Any idea on the operator?
The comparison was only meant to show that not all drivers know their capacity or count and so just judge it based off being 'the front of the bus is full' and when a proper count is done, you see there is a big difference.
Winnington Village Development yes. As for the Hail and Ride, how many people actually know about that as from my experience when I have used it, no one has used it as no one in the development knew it was Hail and Ride.
The 4 has gone to Warrington apparently!
We may be seeing a revamp of the D&G running boards then for Wincham (Northwich) depot as the W7 slots nicely in between the college run. The John Dene run could interwork with the W7 and the Handforth Dean buses return to working with the 188 so then the 88/89 timetable can be improved. That would make a lot of people very happy.
Little bit surprising but then again, they take anything on emergency tender. I just hope the council checks the buses each day have an MOT!
Why is it surprising for Warrington Buses to take on the Barnton service? D&G were clearly not interested in the route. Warrington Buses already operate the other bus service to Barnton and it isn't that far from Warrington. Why the sarcasm? In general (bar the lapse you alluded to), Warrington Buses are well run.
Google maps and all journey planners often have stops in the wrong place though due to poor entries in the relevant database. Unless it is specifically promoted as hail and ride, people don't tend to trust it and I know that I certainly wouldn't. Not least because in established Hail and Ride areas, there tends to be bus stops which everyone sticks to, they are just kept unmarked because to formalise a bus stop means it has to comply with the most recent rules about being so far from junctions etc etc.
That's fine then, let's build car dependency into all new developments and have done with buses in a few years!?!?
I've never specifically said them taking on emergency tenders in Cheshire. You added that bit. They took on Merseyside's 144 emergency tender as well as took on various Halton tenders on emergency contracts when Halton Transport ceased. They had a few Manchester emergency tenders too.
Source for this?
Local Councillors
Care to elaborate?
Doesn’t mention service 7 though.
I asked a Winsford Councillor who confirmed it was D&G
www.facebook.com
I was just confirming service 4. Not 7.
1. I didn't say all households are carless.
2. You haven't confirmed how many times you've travelled that way and whether it's been on different times and different days. All I can conclude from what you've posted is not every journey picks up or drops off on that road. The same could be said for other housing estates served by buses.
There's different types of developments and they are different distances from town centres. Perhaps you could give an example of one almost identical to Winnington Village to back up your claim?
You said "they take anything on emergency tender."
The way I interpret anything would include Cheshire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside tenders, if it's not too far from their depot.
Exclusing Halton, there's been quite a few in recent years, even if there's not been much in the past couple.
289 Altrincham to Northwich
88 Altrincham to Knutsford
200 Manchester Airport to Wilmslow
300 Knutsford circular evening service
48 Northwich to Frodsham
47 Warrington to Lymm
If we also consider that 288 Altrincham to Manchester Airport has gone to an emergency tender more than once, they aren't getting the majority. They just took on the 47 and 48.
It's not a closed group. Anyone with a Facebook account can view it
Northwich Life | Really pleased to report that CW&C have stepped in and saved the No | Facebook
Really pleased to report that CW&C have stepped in and saved the No. 4 bus service from Leftwich-Winnington-Barnton, after Arriva have confirmed they're pulling out. The contract has gone to...
Just because they haven't won, doesnt mean they didn't bid. Warrington is one of those firms, always bid, even if a silly price. If you win, bonus you're earning silly money for it, if you lose, it's no loss.
I had heard a rumour the Adderley Green depot have acquired some double deckers for the 16 and X41 routes, which could relieve some buses for the new Macclesfield services (which are registered on VOSA in the West Midlands region). Not completely sure if 100% true or not just what I've heard
Centrebus have had some changes in Leicester which should've freed up at least 6 vehicles, maybe these will come over in the short term?
Unfortunately for advocates of public transport, people vote with their feet (or in this instance their cars). Cheshire, and for that matter, most of the outer southern part of Greater Manchester that was formerly in Cheshire, is not good bus territory due to the relatively low population density. Hence Arriva's departure. There are extensive new developments, e.g. on the northern and western edges of Congleton and on the former Woodford aerodrome, that are essentially devoid of public transport. Most people who can afford to live in such places can afford a sufficient number of cars that they don't need buses. That is the future outside densely populated inner city areas, and the only major change will be how cars are powered.
But where there are viable alternatives provided, people can and do choose buses. Yes there are other factors to take into account but to paraphrase what you have said Cheshire is bad bus territory and so no one should try to provide buses, that is simply wrong. Saighton Camp near Chester was proof of this before Stagecoach dropped the frequency and made a colossal mess of a timetable. While cars will always exit, people can and do use buses to/from new developments if there is a proper bus service linking those people to where they want to go. Even in dying towns like Andover, they have at 2 decent sized developments with proper bus services (Picket Twenty and East Anton). Didcot has large developments with buses which people are using. There is big potential if the buses are in place and people are given a choice.
Local authorities have no legal obligation to fund any local buses and that is why they are so poorly funded in many areas because there are areas which have to have funding.
I am not talking about a little 3 house development in the middle of Tabley here, this is talking about larger developments which have a higher population density! Yes Cheshire as a whole may have lower population density and less people travelling on buses but within the towns, the usage isn't awful. Give people the choice and some of them will choose buses. How many people choose the bus has a lot of variable factors but if you don't put any service in, no one will travel by bus. Put the service in and you may get 1 person, you may get a 10 per trip. Too many variables but to provide nothing means no one will use it.
I did spend a good number of days in Andover actually with a friend who was a loan driver down there so we were travelling the various routes for a good number of days both in service and driving. Didcot I was basing it off the fact services seem to keep being expanded there and diverting through the developments
D&Gs PVR will increase by 3 in Macclesfield locals, 1 in Northwich on the 1 and 6 on the 31/37. D&G has just saved on 1 bus with the reductions to the 316/318.
If D&Gs track record is anything to go by, route branding will last all of about 3 months (based off the 38, 82 and 85). Not many routes seem to keep route branding with D&G.
